Ice feeding apparatus



Oct. 18, 1955 v. J. MATTHEWS 2,721,007

ICE FEEDING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 28, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Vrncenf Joseph Midi heu:

1955 v. J. MATTHEWS ICE FEEDING APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 28, 1951 INVENTOR. Vmcenf Jos BY e h MQtthU-M Oct. 18, 1955 V. J. MATTHEWS ICE FEEDING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 28, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. finceni f sqvi, Qafifiewa United States Patent ICE FEEDING APPARATUS Vincent Joseph Matthews, Nutley, N. J., assignor to John H. Matthews & Sons, North Arlington, N. J., a partnet-ship Application August 28, 1951, Serial No. 244,030

2 Claims. (Cl. 222-227) This invention relates to an apparatus for feeding or dispensing pulverized, chipped or flake ice of the character generally employed for refrigerating or cooling purposes. An object of the invention is to provide a device of this character by which a smooth and continuous flow of the ice will be obtained from a hopper, and preferably in predetermined quantities, into receptacles or any other containers provided for the reception of the ice.

Dairy products, such as milk and cream contained in bottles or cartons, are often packed in crates and it is desirable to deposit in each crate, and generally as the same is moved along on a conveyor, a predetermined amount of the chipped or flaked ice to insure proper refrigeration for the contents of the crate. The present invention contemplates the provision of an apparatus by means of which the ice will be deposited in predetermined quantities in the crates as the same are carried on the conveyor and are halted at the ice receiving station.

Another object of the invention is to provide means by which building-up or undesirable retention of ice in the hopper of the apparatus is prevented, and the flow of the ice therefrom to its point of ejection from the machine will be smooth and uninterrupted. Still another object of the invention is to provide a feed means by which a predetermined amount of ice for each crate or receptacle moving past or pausing at the outlet of the apparatus, will be assured.

These and other objects to be hereinafter set forth, are attained by the invention, a more particular description of which will appear in the following specification and be set forth in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein an illustrative embodiment of the invention is disclosed, Fig. 1 is an elevational view, partly in section and with parts broken away, of a feeding device constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the hopper, the agitator and the screw feeder, the view being taken substantially on the line 22 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the measuring device located at the outlet of the hopper and which dispenses predetermined quantities of the ice into crates or other receptacles;

Fig. 4 is a sectional View, taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 5 is a side view of the structure of Fig. 3 on a reduced scale and looking at the right side of Fig. 4, and Fig. 6 is an elevational view, partly in section and with parts broken away, of the entire apparatus.

Referring to the drawings, 1 indicates the hopper of the apparatus, the same being substantially of the shape clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and having an open top 2 through which the ice in chipped or flake formation is dumped by any suitable means to maintain a more or less constant level of the ice in the hopper. The hopper is mounted in and is supported by a suitable frame, portions thereof being shown at 3 and 4, and the hopper and the portions of the frame which support the driving means for the hopper agitator to be presently described, are supported from a floor or other base on suitable legs or uprights, two of which are shown at 5 and 6 in Fig. l.

Extending across the hopper 1 is the ice-agitator generally indicated at 7. The same includes a shaft 8 rotative in the bearings 9 and 10 supported by the frame elements 3 and 4. Secured on said shaft 8 adjacent to the side walls 11 and 12 of the hopper, are flanges or circular disks 13 of a diameter to closely fit and be freely rotative within the widest portion of the hopper. Said disks 13 are connected in spaced relation by cross-bars 14 which extend between and connect the peripheries of the two disks 13. Said cross-bars are located in equally spaced relation and extending between the two disks, said bars constitute agitator blades which pass through the ice as the agitator is rotated. The bars 14 may be firmly attached at the outer edges of the disks 13 in any suitable manner such as by securement to angle members 15 which can be attached by welding or other means to the disks 13 adjacent to the edges of the same.

The shaft 8 of the agitator has an end which extends externally of the hopper 1 where it is connected by the coupling 16 to a shaft 17 of a double reduction gear box speed reducer 18 which has its driven shaft 19 connected by a coupling 20 to the shaft 21 of an electric motor 22 suitably supported on the framing 23 of the machine. This arrangement is such that the agitator may be constantly rotated and the ice contents of the hopper thus agitated and prevented from becoming solidified together or from adhering to the walls of the hopper, so that a constant feed of the ice contents of the hopper will be assured.

The feeding means for causing the ice to be dispensed from the hopper, consists of a spiral or screw feed member 24 located in the lower portion of the hopper below the agitator 7. Said screw feed member 24 is provided on shaft 25 rotative in the bearings 26 and 27, said shaft having an end extending outside of the hopper 1 and connected by the coupling 28 to the shaft 29 of a reduction gearing 30 driven from an electric brake motor 31, supported on the frame elements 32.

The electric brake motor 31 may be controlled by any suitable switching means in order to operate the brake motor 31 intermittently if desired, to insure feed of the ice contents from the hopper for selected predetermined periods, thus regulating the quantities of ice distributed. The outlet for the hopper is indicated at 33, the same being located at one end of the screw feeder 24 and directed downwardly, or it might consist of a swingable conduit from which the discharged ice can be delivered in any desired direction. In Fig. 6 the outlet 33 is shown as being connected to the feeder to now be described.

In Figs. 3 to 6 inclusive is shown the automatic feeder or dispenser adapted for attachment to the outlet conduit 33 of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Said automatic feeder or dispenser includes a housing having side plates 34 and 35 maintained in spaced relation by arcuate front and rear walls indicated respectively at 36 and 37. The walls 34 to 37 inclusive define a chamber 38 in which a rotative, partitioned feeder 39 is mounted. Said partitioned feeder 39 includes a shaft 40 rotatively mounted at its ends in bearings 41 and 42. The end of the shaft 40 which extends beyond the bearing 42 carries a star-wheel 43 forming part of a Geneva movement. The star-wheel 43 has its slots 45 cooperating with the roller 44 carried at the end of an arm 46 secured at its opposite end to a shaft 47 carrying the cam member 48. Shaft 47 extends between the side plates 34 and 35 of the feeder housing and is rotatively mounted in the bearings 48 and 49. One end of said shaft 47 is connected through the coupling 50 to the shaft 51 of a speed reducer 52 which has its driven" shaft 53 connected through the coupling 54 to the shaft 55 f anelectric motor 56fv The motor 56 and the reducing gearing 52'- are supported on the cross members 57 and 58 of a frame which includes also longitudinal supports shown at 59 and 60; Cross members 6l and 62 of the frame serve to support the' cham'ber'38r It will be'noted that the rotative feederor-ice dispenser 39i's provided with the partitions 63'-which divid'eit into four. compartments. The arrangement issuchthat in each position of halt or pause of the feeder 39 one'of'the compartmentsis directed upwardly or in the position shown at 64 m Fig. 4, to receive a'charge-of ice through the -open top 65 0f the chamber 38% Said open top 65 is positioned directly belowand canbe connected to the outlet 33 0f the hopper 1 as shown'in-Fi'g. 6; While the upwardly directed compartment, indicated at 64 of the feeder 39 is thus receiving a charge of ice, the compartmentthen directed downwardly, or that indicated at 66 in Fig: 4, is dumping itsficecontents, which descend downwardlyoutof the discharge chute 67 as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 4, to fall directly into any receptacle which may be thenlocated below said chute. The lower endof the chute 67 is provided with grooved-strips 68 to whi'ch an extension chute or other means-or device for receiving and directing the dispensed ice may be detachabl'y secured to thereby enable-the ice ejected from the apparatus to' be delivered or directed atany point or into any. desired-receptaclesor-ontoaconveyor as might required; The upper or moutliend 65 of the feeder maybe connected to the outlet- 33-in'any suitable way, and to facilitate such connection a flange 69 surrounding the mouth 65 is provided.

In the. operation of the apparatus, the hopper is charged with the ice from any desiredsource. The agitator 7- is rotated and this'prevents the icef'rom solidifying'or ad'- hering together or solidly building up within the hopper. The operation of the feeding means may, if desiredbe controlled by the crates or other elements which are tobe filledwith the dispensed ice; In: such case, each crate carried along on a conveyor below or adjacent to the outlet 67' of the feeder of Figs 3 to 5 inclusive will contact a=suitable switch in its path and which will close circuit to the brake motor 31 and cause'the'same to rotate the screw feeder 24 'for a periodof time suflicient-to fill the upper compartment 64 -of the=rotativefeeder 39 with ice. As the screw feeder ceases operation motor 56 will be set in operation to rotate the feeder 39-through the Geneva movement heretofore described for onequarter turn of shaft 40 thus-depositing the contents of a previously-filled compartment of the feeder 39 into the outletchute 67 to cause the same to fall'down into the receptacle or crate below this chute orbelow such extension as; may be attached to the outlet end of the chute. The arrangement above described is such that a prede' termined amount of ice is supplied'to each crate or other receptacle presented at the outlet of the feeder. The ice will. be foundfree-flowingand its movement from hopper.

to outlet is smooth and in regulated quantities according to the refrigeration needs of the contents of the crates or other containers intended for its reception.

Having described one embodiment of the invention, it is obvious that the same: is not to be restricted thereto, but is broad enough to cover all structures coming within the scope of the annexed-claims What I claim is: I

1'. In a machine forfeeding ice, a' hopper for holding a supply of the ice to be fed, a rotative agitatorlocated within the hopper, said agitator comprising a rotative shaft carrying disks at its ends, said' disks having their peripheries connected by spaced blade members, an intermittently operated screw feeder located in the hopper below the agitator, the hopper having a discharge outlet toward which ice is directed by the screw feeder, a dispenser' located at thedischarge outlet and adapted'to receive charges of ice therefrom; saiddispenser including a=housing containing a-rotative feeder divided into a plura'lity of separate compartments, said feeder being intermittentlyrotated in a-manner to cause halts in'its rotative movement to bring one of the compartments into filling position to receive' ice from the outlet of the hopper and another compartment in discharge position, the housing having'adischarge opening'frorn' which ice is-ejected from the latter compartment. I

2. In a machine for feeding" ice, a hopper for containing' the ice to be fed, an agitator rotative in the hopper, said-agitator comprising a shaft carrying spaced disks, a plurality of spaced blades extending between the peripheries of the disks, means forrotating the'agitator, a spiral feeder withinthe hopper below the agitator, an outlet at one end-of'the spiral feeder, a feeder housing, a conduit between the outlet and the housing by which ice iscarried f'romthe outletinto said housing, a rotary dispenser in said housing, the housing having inlet and-outlet openin'gs; said dispenser consisting of an intermittently rotated; closed end partitioned member having compartments sodisposedthat during a halt in the intermittent rotation of the partitioned member, one of said compartments receives a charge of ice while another compartment discharges its contents out of the outlet of the housing.

References (Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Raymond Dec. 5, 1922 

